


the sensibility of cider

by alexanderlightweight



Series: Words of October 2019 [21]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Autumn, First Meetings, Fluff and Humor, Holding Hands, M/M, Smitten at First Sight, Soft Alec Lightwood, Soft Magnus Bane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2020-12-09 18:46:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20999570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexanderlightweight/pseuds/alexanderlightweight
Summary: Autumn is a time for crisp fresh air, avoiding ones siblings and enjoying the changing of seasons.orAlec relaxes, falls head over heels and trips but not necessarily in that order.





	the sensibility of cider

**Author's Note:**

> for fluff bingo: walking in the country (okay I used a very loose sense of the term country because technically they are in A country)

Alec tripped not over his own feet but because of his haste to avoid being run into by a small mundane child that couldn’t see him. It was the instinct born from a lifetime of training to turn on his heel, letting the child pass him by unscathed and fall in a controlled roll to his back.

He lay there, laughing quietly at himself in the soft grass, enjoying the crunch of leaves under him and the smell of oak in the air. It wasn’t the most comfortable place as acorns made for hard bedfellows, but it was nice to take a moment and he sighed, staring up at the sunlight filtering through the changing leaves.

“That was a nifty bit of footwork,” someone said and Alec made a non-committal noise of agreement. He started up as realization struck, surprise in his eyes as he locked gazes with the man who had spoken.

He was gorgeous and lovely and Alec hadn’t even realized he could form such instant and appreciative opinions about someone before now.

“Hi,” he said rather breathlessly, still trying to understand how and why he was being spoken to. “I-“ he paused, not about to stupidly ask the man if he could see him, that was obvious enough. “I’m Alec.”

“Magnus,” was offered with a small, sly smile and then a hand was offered, a tiny whirl of blue flames dancing along darkly painted nails. It felt like both a temptation and a challenge and while Alec was good at resisting the former, he’d never backed down from the latter.

He held out his own hand, meaning to shake Magnus’ or let himself be pulled up but was distracted by the dark indigo nail polish and the firm grip that held his hand.

There was a polite, inquisitive noise and Alec looked back up to see Magnus staring at him, rather bemusedly and with the most stunning, gold eyes ever. He couldn’t really help his response, the way his mouth went dry and he had to lick his lips to try and regain his thoughts. 

It took him a moment to realize that he’d not just taken Magnus’ offer, he’d then gone so far as to tangle his fingers with Magnus’ intricately and then make no move to actually get up.

“Oh,” he said and he could feel the heat creeping up his cheeks, “I’m so sorr-“

“Don’t be,” Magnus cut him off, using his hold to pull Alec up and Alec went easily, which took his breath away for an entirely different reason. “I was just surprised, in a good way.” He promised and since he’d made no move to take his hand back, Alec relaxed a bit more. They stood there for a moment, staring at each other in what had to have been the most charged moment of contemplation Alec had ever been a part of or even witnessed.

“I was taking a walk to enjoy the change of seasons, care to join me as I finish?” 

It was on the tip of his tongue to instinctively refuse and he could already see how this would go. Magnus would take his hand back and Alec would probably never see him again and he’d be haunted by this one, nearly perfect moment with the most beautiful man he’d ever seen.

He didn’t want that.

Besides, Jace and Izzy were in Idris which meant that Alec could be selfish for once. He didn’t have to worry about running around and cleaning up their messes because just for a little bit, they were someone else's problem. The realization made him grin a little and he took one small step closer to Magnus, but with the way his heart thundered in his chest it felt as though he’d crossed a chasm.

“I don’t have anywhere to be,” he said and he couldn’t help the way he felt so alive and joyful at the prospect. 

Magnus swallowed, and Alec traced the movements of his throat and the way his eyes widened in surprise before they narrowed in pleased delight. 

“In that case,” Magnus said and his voice was so low Alec had to lean closer just to hear it, “can I buy you a drink while we walk?”

He could and he did, summoning them each a cup of hot cider and even going so far as to magic it directly to Alec’s free hand. Alec didn’t know if it was an excuse or a dare, either way he felt content, one hand warmed by cider and the other by Magnus’ palm.

“I’m due to go back to the Institute,” Alec finally said as the sun dropped a little lower and the air grew colder. His cup was tragically empty and each step made him feel a bit more hollow on the inside, he didn’t want to leave but the path was ending as was his excuse to walk with Magnus.

“Really? Some important meeting or deadly demons to thwart?” Magnus asked, the teasing softness of his voice changing into something a little more bitter and cold -_a_ _ nd how strange it was that Alec could already distinguish the mercurial changes in his tone _.

Alec hesitated, there were no meetings to attend and without Jace and Izzy, well he was technically allowed to do as he liked. The sun was still out so demonic activity would be low and even if there was a spike of it during the evening, without Izzy and Jace to manage in the field, he would only go out as a last resort. He was also overdue for some downtime, not that he’d ever had any reason to take it before. This though, he could take this and no one would interfere. No nosey siblings prying into his life and teasing him because they didn’t understand him and no unexpected interruptions to divide his time.

Alec blinked and weighed his options and he found he wanted to take the risk, wanted to make a choice for himself.

“Actually no,” he found himself saying and it felt like a dream, “I don’t have anything I can’t do later.”

“Really?” Magnus asked and he sounded as surprised as Alec felt, “so I can possibly steal you away for dinner? We worked up quite an appetite with all that walking.”

Alec knew that it was an absurd excuse considering that he fought demons for a living and that Magnus probably used up a lot of magical energy in his work but he couldn’t help the grin on his face or the delight that he felt.

“I’m famished,” he agreed, “dinner at this point would only be sensible.” 

Magnus’ charmed laughter made him blush, not from embarrassment but from the giddy joy of having made a man like him happy. 

“Well then Alexander, let us be sensible.” 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on tumblr as [alexanderlightweight](https://alexanderlightweight.tumblr.com)


End file.
